Patna: Amid dissension between the two long-standing NDA allies over the alleged induction of two newly elected MLCs into the BJP, CM Samrat Choudhary met his predecessor Nitish Kumar on Wednesday shortly after returning from Delhi and briefed him on developments in the national capital.The CM said he met Nitish to brief him on the finalisation of the Bihar Water Source Restoration and Silt Management Policy, 2026, in New Delhi — an issue the JD(U) chief had raised several times in the past. “I congratulated him (Nitish) on behalf of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Nitish ji repeatedly raised this issue and his dream has been fulfilled now,” Choudhary told reporters on Wednesday.The meeting assumes significance against the backdrop of the JD(U)’s review meeting scheduled for Thursday to assess the party’s performance in the recently held legislative council elections. The party fielded candidates in four of the eight seats but won only one. What has annoyed the JD(U) leadership is the BJP’s reported induction of two MLCs, Bansidhar Brajwasi and Rahul Raj, who won the elections by defeating JD(U) candidates, JD(U) sources said.While Brajwasi defeated JD(U) candidate and party spokesperson Abhishek Jha in the Tirhut graduates’ constituency, Raj trounced JD(U) candidate Anand Pushkar in the Saran teachers’ constituency. Questioning the ethics of the BJP’s haste in allegedly inducting them into the party, state JD(U) president Umesh Singh Kushwaha wondered how Rahul Raj, who was expelled from the BJP for six years for indulging in “anti-party” activities, was welcomed back so soon. Another JD(U) functionary asked, “Kya gathbandhan dharma nibhane ki jimmedari kewal JD(U) par hai?”As the issue snowballed into a major controversy, threatening the membership of both Independent MLCs, the BJP later clarified that they had merely extended their support to the party.
